Fans of time-travel drama Primeval are waiting to find out if British network ITV will order a fourth season of the show - which may end up premiering on the British SciFi Channel, because of the cost of production.

British newspaper the Guardian is reporting that, despite Primeval being one of ITV's most successful dramas, the high production costs may force the network to share expenses with the UK SciFi Channel, allowing them to show the series before it ends up on its home network. While neither SciFi nor Primeval production company Impossible Pictures offered comment - and ITV's comment was a generic "no decision has been made about a fourth season yet" - an anonymous source was quoted as saying:

Everything is being looked at to see if the show can be brought in most cost-effectively and there is a plan that has been put to ITV which involves other channels. It is a couple of weeks away from a decision. [ITV Director] Peter Fincham wants to see what kind of business deals can be put together.

The UK SciFi Channel shares a parent company, NBC Universal, with the American SciFi/SyFy, which leads us to wonder whether a deal could be worked out allowing the US channel to own American rights and premiere the episodes simultaneously with ITV in the UK, similar to the co-funding of Battlestar Galactica between the US SciFi and UK Sky networks...